In these past weeks, apparently there has been a lot of discussion about Coaches in many different scenarios. As a Tennis Instructor, I tend to understand the pressure Coaches are under daily especially on the Pro Circuit.

Try to understand the gut wrenching agony of a person coaching someone who is on the Tour currently. Unless you happen to be the Coaches for Rafa Nadal, you don't stand a chance of remaining in your position very long without your horse obtaining the results they're hoping for and that is usually winning a Major. Once a Player is firmly in the Top 10, all that is on their minds are winning Majors (period) anything less and they're constantly disappointed.

How about Andy Murray's coach Miles Maclagan. Murray was suppose to win Wimbledon this year. It was a forgone conclusion and all the fanfare had been laid out simply awaiting for Andy to make it official by winning the Title but what happened? Oh yeah, this other Andy got in the way of all the Hoopla. So who's fault was it that Murray didn't get the prize he worked hard to achieve. Well the Coach of course. I mean each & everytime a Player fails to accomplish the goals they have set out for themselves, it's the Coach's fault and that person gets fired. But isn't it amazing with all the firings going on throughout a year, generally the Player doesn't fair very much better on their own or with a different coach. So why do they or anybody need coaches?

But what about those Players who have serious game until the heat is on like Dinera Safina & Jana Novatna, etc. They already know how to win big matches that don't have conclusive endings like whoever wins this Match takes the Title. So basically is it a coach that is needed here or maybe a Shrink to find out whats going on in their head that prevents them from performing at the level they normally do when the stakes aren't so high.

Think about poor old Larry Stefanki who all but anointed Andy Roddick by assuring him of a Wimbledon win this year, was it his fault that it didn't happen? Not suggesting Roger Federer had anything to do with the letdown but Andy did play a very clean, powerful, thoughtful & aggressive match in the Finals but that Federer guy just downright spoiled it for everybody like Nadal did the year before. Of course we need Coaches because you just can't figure out the mechanics of what you are doing without the help of someone trained in watching for specific areas of a game.

Coach

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08-09-2009, 06:40 PM

Lawn Tennis

imo absolutely. pro or not, they are all still human. there may be times when they dont need to work on their form, but the assurance that somebody is there if they need a hint or maybe some motivation can only help. positive human interaction is a key to winning big.

08-09-2009, 11:05 PM

tennisking1

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coach

In these past weeks, apparently there has been a lot of discussion about Coaches in many different scenarios. As a Tennis Instructor, I tend to understand the pressure Coaches are under daily especially on the Pro Circuit.

Try to understand the gut wrenching agony of a person coaching someone who is on the Tour currently. Unless you happen to be the Coaches for Rafa Nadal, you don't stand a chance of remaining in your position very long without your horse obtaining the results they're hoping for and that is usually winning a Major. Once a Player is firmly in the Top 10, all that is on their minds are winning Majors (period) anything less and they're constantly disappointed.

How about Andy Murray's coach Miles Maclagan. Murray was suppose to win Wimbledon this year. It was a forgone conclusion and all the fanfare had been laid out simply awaiting for Andy to make it official by winning the Title but what happened? Oh yeah, this other Andy got in the way of all the Hoopla. So who's fault was it that Murray didn't get the prize he worked hard to achieve. Well the Coach of course. I mean each & everytime a Player fails to accomplish the goals they have set out for themselves, it's the Coach's fault and that person gets fired. But isn't it amazing with all the firings going on throughout a year, generally the Player doesn't fair very much better on their own or with a different coach. So why do they or anybody need coaches?

But what about those Players who have serious game until the heat is on like Dinera Safina & Jana Novatna, etc. They already know how to win big matches that don't have conclusive endings like whoever wins this Match takes the Title. So basically is it a coach that is needed here or maybe a Shrink to find out whats going on in their head that prevents them from performing at the level they normally do when the stakes aren't so high.

Think about poor old Larry Stefanki who all but anointed Andy Roddick by assuring him of a Wimbledon win this year, was it his fault that it didn't happen? Not suggesting Roger Federer had anything to do with the letdown but Andy did play a very clean, powerful, thoughtful & aggressive match in the Finals but that Federer guy just downright spoiled it for everybody like Nadal did the year before. Of course we need Coaches because you just can't figure out the mechanics of what you are doing without the help of someone trained in watching for specific areas of a game.

Coach

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Oh yes. Coaches are absolutely necessary. I have been talking with Bubo on here about Hingis and how Melanie is not really a coach. She is, however, a great manager and safety blanket. Anytime a player looks to anyone but himself/herself after a loss is absolutely ludicrous. They lost the match. Not the coach. Roddick and Murray's coaches obviously did something right just to get them deep into the tournament. They need to stop looking for a scapegoat and look in the mirror for the problem. Both Murray and Roddick are whiners and if there was one thing that I noticed about Roddick in this past match is that he stopped acting like a crybaby. He was generous after the match and truly played the entire match hard. As for Murray, I liken him to Goran Ivanisevic. I think the extra pouch in his racquet bag holds a large ziplock bag of pacifiers. Coaches are there to tweak the players game and work on things to help them improve. I assure you the two players mentioned here have great coaches. Stefanki especially. If I were going to enlist a coach, I would be after Bob Brett. The guy was great. Classy guy too.

08-09-2009, 11:26 PM

Lawn Tennis

Quote:

Originally Posted by tennisking1

I noticed about Roddick in this past match is that he stopped acting like a crybaby. He was generous after the match and truly played the entire match hard.

you have a good point. normally Roddick finds something to complain about and then never lets it go; then he loses. he held tight and almost beat the guy he probably thought he never would have another chance at beating.

08-09-2009, 11:42 PM

Coach

Andy Roddick above all others has the most pressure to perform and get results. For those who remember, Roddick had lots of money & hype pave the way for him into the Pros. He was suppose to be America's answer to the loss of our greats, Agassi & Sampras when hey retired. Andy was going to carry the gantlet into the future of American Men's Pro Tennis. The hands-down worse thing to happen to Andy was to lose in the 1st Rd after American Express sponsored that incredibly stupid MoJo hype. Andy was clearly not ready for the pressure his handlers laid in his lap.

Also Andy's personality is nowhere near what Andre & Pete's personalities are like. All the coaches in the World can't win tournaments for you. Unfortunately for Andy, he has to deal with guys like Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. That's a huge mountain to climb. On grass he has a chance due to his serve but his coaches had to hopefully show Roddick how to win from the baseline if he met a player who could deal with the serve.

This is not what Andy had imagined when he first came on the scene. I'm certain Roddick simply figured his serve would carry him to the Winner's circle.
Since it was obvious it didn't, in comes Jimmy Connors who tried to help him win from the Baseline. Gilbert tried to help him become an All-Court player occasionally coming in when the moment was right but what none of these Coaches were able to do as yet is to instill that element that only a few have and that's the instinct to know when it's the right moment.

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08-27-2009, 04:14 AM

JohnH

Coaches are absolutely necessary. For most players.

A good coach will need to wear many hats in the service of a player. Between technical, tactical, physical and mental skills the coach must know, there are also other areas like managing a players travel and hotel schedule. Practice times and practice partners must sometimes be found. Even when to eat and sleep.

It all depends upon the needs of the individual player.

I've been lucky in that most of my players are self reliant, and my duties have been on-court. But when I take over a junior for an ITF tour, for example, I literally manage their entire life for 3-4 weeks! Great fun, but taxing :)